Periwinkle Year
by Death and Berry
Summary: Follow Gray and Juvia as they grow closer and closer over the months. 12 One-shots for 12 months of the year. Gruvia. Rating may vary.
1. December

**Greetings everyone! So basically, this fanfic will hold 12 shots of Gray and Juvia's developing relationship. As mentioned in the summary, it'll be 12 short stories for the 12 months of the year, and we're starting in December, well, just because.**

**Also, the title refers to Gray and Juvia together. Since Periwinkle is a sort of pale/cold blue, I threw the white of Gray's magic and the blue of Juvia's magic together and this came out. **

**Enjoy! :)**

Periwinkle Year

{December}

_Hope is the only bee that makes honey without flowers. -Robert Green Ingersoll_

"Okay, everyone get ready!" yelled Mirajane, her eyes sparkling and her mouth opened in a radiant smile that purposely showed her joy and excitement.

The people in the guild immediately reacted as Mira raised her brown bag up in the air. "Each mage has his or her name in there, on a piece of paper. Please form one and only line in front of me and we will begin the drawing!"

Gray Fullbuster let out a resigned groan as he made his way toward the end of the line with Natsu, Lucy and Wendy. Christmas was only in one week, and this year, Mira and Makarov had apparently decided that everyone in the guild would have to participate in secret Santa. Fairy Tail would spend Christmas Eve together, celebrate until midnight, eat a wonderful meal and then, proceed with the gift exchange.

It wasn't that Gray was against the idea, not at all, but he had just never been a big fan of Christmas. Maybe it was the overjoyed feeling that flew around every single person that annoyed him, or the fact that the same damn songs kept repeating again and again and again…

This year, he would have to buy someone…something. Some sort of present. He had never done this before, and he knew he wouldn't be good at finding a great idea. Plus, he had been a little short on cash lately, given the fact that he hadn't taken many missions.

'Anyways,' thought the ice mage as he wore a light frown. 'I'll surely find a way to figure something out during the remaining week, no need to over think it now.'

"I'm so excited about the secret Santa!" Gray suddenly heard Lucy squeal in front of him. "This Christmas is gonna be perfect!"

Natsu scratched the back of his head with a thoughtful face before smiling widely out of nowhere, his two hands now in fists. "Hey, does this mean that if I pick Erza and get her a crappy gift, she'll get mad at me and I'll finally be able to fight her?"

A sweat drop appeared on Wendy's head while Lucy hit her forehead with her hand. "That's not the spirit of Christmas, idiot!"

Gray sighed and rolled his eyes in exasperation before getting back into his own thoughts. If only he could get Happy, he could just give him a fish and the silly cat would be more than thrilled. Perfect plan.

After a minute or two, Gray arrived in front of an extremely satisfied Mirajane and put one hand in the bag, feeling the little papers on his skin. 'Come on give me Happy. Happy,' he silently hoped in his mind.

Gray's hand finally stopped on one single paper. He slowly raised his hand and unfolded it, before his eyes read the name written in black ink…

Juvia.

Gray froze right there on the spot, before blinking slowly one and only time, and reading it again.

Juvia.

Was this some kind of joke?!

Juvia. He had actually, out of every single mage in Fairy Tail, pulled out the woman who would throw herself in front of a train for him? Juvia?

He had indeed picked her.

Gray folded the paper again and hid it in his pocket, walking away from the line and from the now too-excited guild he usually called his family.

On the good way, this could be terribly easy. Given the fact that Juvia Lockser was crazy about him, he could give her a banana and she'd be on cloud nine.

On the other hand… She was a really sensitive person and strangely, he didn't want to disappoint her too much and get her all teary.

Gray sighed. This was going to be a hell of a week.

. . . . . . . . . .

"ONLY ONE MINUTE LEFT!"

Natsu and Happy had been doing the countdown for over a half an hour now. People had been rather annoyed at first, but now, almost everyone had a smile on their faces, even Gray -he had to admit- as midnight was only a few seconds away.

"Mouaahhh I can't wait to eat everything!" Natsu said loudly, his tongue passing between his lips and his hands on his hips. He then turned and walked in the room next to the bar. "Hey, you in the kitchen! Get the buffet ready, I'm coming!"

"Aye!"

Lucy, standing beside Gray, only closed her eyes and sighed slightly. "Let's just hope they'll leave enough food for the rest of us."

"_Five, four, three, two, one," _the final countdown was happily yelled in the guild. "Merry Christmas!"

Gray smiled in the corner of his mouth as he looked around him. Natsu jumping in the gigantic buffet; Carla pulling on Happy's paw to stop the mess he was about to make; Wendy, Lucy and Levy smiling widely and laughing together; Mirajane and Lisanna hugging each other; Cana protecting her barrel of sake; Bickslow shoving Evergreen and Elfman under a mistletoe; master Makarov scowling at Laxus and Gajeel for not being happy enough; Erza already saving her dear strawberry cake…

It was a normal, yet the most lighthearted type of night for Fairy Tail.

The diner passed rather quickly, the mages sharing many laughs as they ate together. The guild had been noisy all evening and all night long, but then again, everyone in here was used to it. Gray had caught Juvia giving him a few loving and curious glances during the feast, from the table she shared with Gajeel, Levy, Jet and Droy. As usual, the ice mage didn't really return the constant attention.

It's only around two in the morning that Mirajane spoke again to do her announcement. "Okay everyone, this is the moment we had all been waiting for: secret Santa!"

Many happy cheers were thrown around here and there, before the white-haired mage continued. "Here's how it's going to work: you're all going to stay at the table you are sitting at right now, and we're going to pick one of Cana's card at a time. The person chosen will have to get up and give his or her present to the one he or she picked. Everyone understand?"

"What?! We have to give it in front of everyone else?" yelled a very flushed Evergreen.

Mira smiled and talked before anyone else could make a comment. "Yes, that is right." She then turned to face everyone again. "Are you all ready? Let's start!"

About an hour later, almost half the guild had already passed. A few moments brought major reactions from the others, such as Freed giving Gray straps to prevent him from undressing all the time and which made the ice boy scowl deeply – though according to Freed, it was a very noble gift. There was also when Cana gave Lucy a complete set of black and pink lingerie, apparently to finally get her_ some luck_ _in bed_, which made the blonde blush like crazy and yell at the older woman. And of course, let's not forget when Natsu gave Erza a toothbrush… Literally.

And finally, Mirajane called out the young Fullbuster.

Gray took his well wrapped present in his hands, got up and walked toward a certain water mage. As Juvia understood that Gray was making his way to her, she felt the beating of her heart increase and her cheeks go from pale to rosy. Some let out a laugh and said something about the irony of the situation, but Gray just ignored them. He simply gave his present, not looking at her, and stood there, waiting for the girl to unwrap it.

Juvia, after a few seconds of mentally freaking out, began unwrapping her gift.

The guild hadn't been this quiet since they started to celebrate. Actually, it hadn't been this quiet in a long time…

As Juvia finally let the wrapping paper fall to the floor, her eyes widened and she gasped loudly enough for many members to hear.

And she wasn't the only astonished one.

In front of her blue eyes was the gift Gray had just given her: a simple, yet breathtakingly beautiful flower, completely made of translucent ice. Juvia couldn't tear her eyes from it, and slowly, very slowly, she lift it in the air, the light going through it making it look like it was made of pure crystal.

Gray suddenly cleared his throat as he noticed the sudden –and weird- silence in the room. "Hm, I made it with a special Ice-Make technic," he told his blue-haired partner. "It's not Eternal Ice but it won't melt for another hundred years, maybe even more."

Juvia raised her stare and was about to meet Gray's eyes when Natsu yelled out of nowhere: "What the heck is that? You made a random flower?" he chuckled. "That's even worse than the toothbrush!"

Gray was about to growl and talk back but Levy stopped him.

"I know this flower," she said as she got up and everyone looked at her. "It's a Zephyranthes, isn't it Gray?"

The boy was slightly surprised that someone knew about this flower, but then again, that was Levy. "Hm, yeah," he answered, looking at the petite lady.

"It isn't a very common flower, it blooms only at night, because it needs colder temperature. It also needs lots, lots of water, but rain is usually what it takes to make it bloom perfectly. It's also one of the rare flowers that can survive during winter. Basically, this flower needs both rain and cold to exist."

With this declaration, the whole guild became speechless. Except of course, of Natsu.

"Yeah, and? It's still a random flower," said the salamander.

But most of the people in the room understood the meaning, the metaphor hidden in this crystalline flower.

"Drop it, Natsu," said Lucy with a small smile as she put her hand on the Dragon Slayer's shoulder.

The boy stayed totally clueless, just as Juvia, who wasn't even sure if her breathing was regular anymore. But she didn't care.

She just didn't understood Gray's intentions.

'Gray-sama… What did you mean with this?' she thought, her hands still around the delicate and most meaningful object she had ever possessed in her life.

Gray, who was getting more and more confused with the situation he was in right now, turned around to see all mages staring at him blankly. Even Cana.

He frowned slightly and started making his way back to his table. "Whatever, can we continue the Santa thing?"

Mirajane suddenly blinked and cleared her throat. "Hm, yes. Of course. Next one is…Gajeel!"

. . . . . . . . . .

Once the gift exchange was –finally- over, the guild surprisingly and completely out of the blue, turned into a real dance floor. The music was incredibly loud, and many mages were, unfortunately for some men such as Macao, shaking and bouncing their bodies to the rhythm. Most of them were either drunk or overly enthusiast with celebration, and soon, a certain ice mage couldn't take any more of this unstoppable hurricane.

As he closed the main doors of the guild behind him, Gray breathed in the cold sent of winter, instantly feeling way more relaxed and comfortable. A couple of minutes passed, ten maybe, and he just stood there, focused on the cool and refreshing air around him.

Gray suddenly heard the doors open then close again behind him, and before he could turn around, a voice he knew so well filled his ears, and this time, it didn't sound so annoying to him.

"Gray-sama."

He didn't really move, in fact, he didn't know if he should say or do something in particular.

"Hey," he simply answered as she walked next to him to look at the white moon above them.

Silence fell over the two for a couple of seconds, maybe even a few minutes. It wasn't the most natural thing ever, but didn't feel awkward either.

That is, until Juvia spoke.

"Juvia didn't even say thank you to Gray-sama…" she almost whispered, turning to Gray slightly, although her gaze was set on the floor. "For the wonderful gift you gave her."

Gray blinked several times as she raised her head a little, finally looking at him. "Oh, it wasn't much though…"

"No." Juvia cut him in his hesitation. "Juvia loves it. It's…It's one of the nicest things she has ever received," she told him with an honest and beautiful smile, her eyes shining under the light of the moon and stars.

Gray gulped silently. It just amazed him how she could go from a crazy and hyperactive fangirl to a simple yet…captivating young woman.

He could see it in her face though: hope.

He couldn't let her hope too much, because he knew what she wanted.

"Hm, Juvia…" started Gray rather clumsily while frowning a bit. "You know I didn't mean to…"

"I know."

Gray, who was apparently staring at the ground, suddenly looked up at her in surprise. She knew what he was about to say, yet, her expression didn't show disappointment or sadness of any kind. No, she had a small smile plastered on her delicate face instead.

He was glad she understood, because he himself didn't know what he wanted to say. Gray didn't want her to have false hopes again, and he didn't want to have to explain the flower to anyone. Hell, he didn't even know why he had given it to her in the first place; he couldn't explain it himself. The idea had gotten into his mind without him realizing anything, and the next thing he knew, he was presenting his gift.

But the real meaning of it? He couldn't tell. He didn't even want to go there anyways.

"Can Juvia ask you something though, Gray-sama?"

Fullbuster was suddenly pulled out of his thoughts, like a freezing shower waking you up in a second. "Uh, sure…"

The girl blinked slowly, biting her bottom lip in a light way. "Do you…mind…Juvia's presence at the guild?"

Gray almost widened his eyes, but finally frowned instead. "What kind of question is that? You are an important member of Fairy Tail, of course I don't mind you being here."

Juvia's lips curved upward again, somewhere between shyness and slyness, if such a place even existed.

"Then, could you say you enjoy her presence here?"

Gray was slightly taken aback. _Here_. Gray knew, he felt that this little word held different meanings. Here at Fairy Tail? Here right now, outside with him? Here…by his side?

The Ice-Make mage didn't want to ask though. Ask her…or himself.

He then cleared his throat, answering "Uh… Yeah, I…I guess you could say that."

Juvia's eyes half closed as her mouth formed a full and large smile, and her hand almost covered it, making look like she wanted to giggle.

Surprisingly, that time, it didn't irritate the hell out of Gray. Against all odds, it was quite the opposite.

"I see," she murmured with a satisfied expression. Gray didn't realize he was staring at her when she started walking toward the guild. "Juvia will go back inside then, Gray-sama." She stopped with one hand on the big doorknob, saying her last words in a gentle, unique voice.

"Merry Christmas, Gray-sama."

Gray watched her as she disappeared inside, where the music still hadn't stopped. Blinking once, he answered in the night "Yeah… Merry Christmas, Juvia."

He turned back to observe the dark sky again. Gray felt a little relieved, but he couldn't help but wonder what was the unknown, prickling, tiny feeling in his chest.

**So, like it? Hate it? Please let me know! **

**I know Christmas was over two months ago but I really wanted to write this idea, so I had to start with December. **

**The more reviews I get, the faster I will uptade! There should be a new chapter each month, but it might take less than that if you guys like it and if I have the time to write. **

**Also, Fairy Tail ep. 176 is coming back in April, are you excited? I SURE AS HELL AM :D**

**(Oh and I don't own Fairy Tail, yeah I know, shocking.)**

**|Death and Berry|**


	2. January

**Aye people~ Thank you for your nice reviews, I'm glad you all like it! I'm sorry for the late uptade though, so busy x.x but without further do, here's January! **

Periwinkle Year

{January}

_My age is as a lusty winter, frosty but kindly. – William Shakespear_

"Hm… I think we should pick this one. What do you think Lucy?"

Natsu Dragneel took the brown piece of paper from the wall, shoving it in front of a certain blonde haired mage's face.

The girl groaned in a high voice to show her annoyance and took the paper into her own hands, bringing it to a reasonable and readable distance.

Her eyes suddenly widened and she opened her mouth to let out a little –or not so little- happy scream.

"500 000 jewels?!" she suddenly exclaimed, her pigtails bouncing up and down as she jumped on place. "I am there!"

"Ahh, Lucy, Lucy… So very focused on the superficial thing that is money…" Happy sighed dramatically, shaking his head slowly.

"I HEARD THAT YOU KNOW!" she yelled back at the blue cat, her expression now distorted angrily.

"Ah but this is a five person mission," commented a surprisingly calm Natsu. "Hey Gray, Erza! C'mere, we got a mission!"

Gray grunted as he made his way to Natsu, shouting something about getting his ass kicked if he would ever give him orders again. As a usual fight was about to explode, Erza separated the two, almost knocking them down. Perfect timing, you had to admit.

And obviously, Natsu was back to normal in a second. "Then let's get going, I'm all fired up!"

"We still need another member, flame-brain."

"Hm, scowling-face has a point…" thought Natsu, a finger to his chin. He then took a quick look around the guild and before Gray could throw another insult, the dragon slayer exclaimed: "There's Juvia! We can ask her!"

Gray's mouth dropped open the second he heard the name. Before he could reflect on the situation, words were spilling out of his mouth. "Why should we ask Juvia? What about Wendy?"

"She's on a mission with Freed and Carla, again," added Erza, which Lucy nodded along to. Gray blinked. "Well, then-"

"HEY JUVIA!" The young Dragneel was already running to the water mage, a large smile on his face as usual.

The team didn't have time to catch up with Natsu that Juvia Lockser was already up from her table and jumping around excitingly, her hands joined above her heart.

"Yes! Juvia would love to go on a mission with Gray-sama!"

Gray sighed roughly, his hands in his pockets. Yes, he was surprisingly fully dressed. "We're still gonna be five, you know."

"Great," cut in Natsu. "Now nothing's stopping us, let's go!"

"Ahhh~ Juvia is so happy!"

Gray looked at her from the corner of his eye as Natsu left the guild with Happy and Lucy, while Erza left to go pack some stuff. 'Still her usual self after all,' thought the ice-make mage with a second sigh.

. . . . . . . . . .

The team had spent the whole day fighting, on a road about an hour away from Magnolia. Thankfully, their opponents weren't strong enough to represent any real danger.

But now, after 15 hours of using their powers, the mages were completely beaten down and had, to the misfortune of Lucy, to stay sleep here, in the middle of nowhere, for the night.

And on top of that, the water mage had gotten, somehow during the trip or the fight, a huge knot in her hair. Yep, literally. A first for her, that made her feel incredibly frustrated. She had tried for a good thirty minutes to fix it, but nothing worked.

The blue-haired lady turned around on her tiny mattress for the hundredth time already. Given the fact that they had been in 'bed' for over two hours now, she concluded that sleep wouldn't welcome her tonight. Plus, with that big damn knot in her hair, she couldn't even rest on her left side.

Juvia slowly got up, making sure to keep it down for the two girls sleeping soundly beside her. She put her boots on, took a hairbrush in her small suitcase, unzipped the tent carefully and finally stepped out of the so called bedroom.

The cold air hit her as she looked up at the dark sky. Sadly, there wasn't any moon to be seen tonight. The cold didn't bother her that much but still, she readjusted her vest on her slim but full upper body.

She lightly made her way to the edge of the pit before sitting on a big and rather flat rock. As uncomfortable as it was though, she stood there for a couple of minutes, sighing heavily as her usual thoughts and night worries approached her like a sly creature crawling to his prey.

"Can't sleep either huh," that oh so familiar voice stabbed the monster in her mind.

Juvia turned around in a heartbeat, her eyes widening slightly. "Gay-sama…" was all she could say as Gray sat down on the rock next to her.

"As much as I want some sleep, Natsu keeps snoring like a freaking mammoth," growled the ice mage, kicking a tiny rock on the ground.

Juvia blinked once before her mouth broke into a small smile, the hint of a giggle escaping her throat.

A rather uneasy silence fell over the two, even though something was beating fast into the woman's ears: her heart.

Unconsciously, her hand went directly to the knot in her blue hair, trying to set her poor head free from this ball of horror.

She noticed Gray giving her a glance when she pulled a little too hard and let out a sharp sound of annoyance.

"Something wrong?"

Juvia immediately stopped her movements, fighting a blush like she could. "Oh! No, it's fine, Gray-sama," she said kind of nervously, hoping he wouldn't go any further.

The Fullbuster frowned slightly. "I heard the sound you just made. What's wrong? Are you injured?"

Juvia widened her eyes and quickly shook her head. "No! Juvia isn't hurt anywhere Gray-sama! Juvia swears!"

Gray seemed to relax a bit. "Okay, then what _is_ with you?"

The young woman felt the heat raise up to her cheeks once more, and her eyes quickly found the ground. "Hu-hm… Juvia just…"

By instinct her hand went to the end of her hair, passing her fingers through it nervously.

"Juvia just…?" Gray was already on the edge of losing his patience.

"Ju-juvia just…she…has a knot in her hair!"

Silence overtook the scene one more time, Juvia hiding her face with her hands and Gray, staring at her with a surprised yet clueless expression.

…When the boy suddenly let out a scoff that dangerously came close to a true heart-warming laugh.

"You…have a knot…in your hair," the girl nodded her head in slight shame. "That's it?"

At that, Juvia abruptly turned her head to look at him. "W-well Gray-sama, it's embarrassing to Juvia!"

Gray raised an eyebrow. "What for?" he asked, thinking this was rather weird.

"Because Juvia always takes good care of her body! Never has such a thing happened to Juvia! And now, well," a light blush was making its way back on her cheeks. "Juvia can't fix her hair…"

There was a pretty long silence, and even though the water mage could feel her partner's gaze on her, she kept her head down and her mouth shut.

'Gray-sama probably thinks Juvia is making a fuss over nothing…again,' she couldn't stop the thought that went through her mind.

"Well do you want help?"

Juvia widened her blue eyes, and for a pretty long minute, she didn't know what to answer. Her brain struggled with words, yet, she didn't seem to find any good enough response.

"Wha-what do you mean?" she finally asked in an uneven voice.

Gray let out some sort of unexplainable grunt. "Well you look like you can't get through with it, I can try if you want 'cause Lucy had a few of those, and me and Natsu had to help her to get her to stop whining."

Juvia bit her bottom lip slightly at the mention of the blonde's name, and also…well, just the idea of Gray playing in her hair was enough to get her all fuzzy inside.

"Oh," she answered in a quiet voice. "If Gray-sama doesn't mind…he could…try," she swallowed nervously. "Juvia supposes…" She dropped her head a little. "But only if Gray-sama wants to!"

There was no answer from the ice mage so Juvia was about to give up and go back to her tent when she heard Gray stand up.

"Move, I'll sit behind you."

Juvia's brain was on the edge of crashing down at this point, so when she moved slightly to make some room for Gray on the rock, her face turned a deep shade of pink.

"Well, where is the knot?"

Juvia blinked rapidly and quickly pointed the mess on the side of her head.

When she didn't move, Gray let out one of his usual sounds of annoyance. "Then you need to turn around, silly."

The girl blushed even harder. "Oh, sorry!"

When she was finally well positioned, Gray facing her back, he spotted the knot, which he had to admit, was well developed.

"Do you have a hairbrush?"

"Hm, yes! Right here!"

When Gray picked the violet brush from the floor, he stared at the little clouds on it and almost let out a chuckle. Almost.

Juvia tensed as she felt Gray's fingers grab her hair, nicely enough not to hurt her but hard enough to accomplish his task. His fingers analyzed the small ball that looked so out of place in this neat, silky cyan waterfall.

The young man started passing the brush, going for the bottom of the knot first.

"Damn, you were right, this _is_ something," mumbled Gray, frowning a little.

Juvia didn't respond but found herself smiling lightly at her friend's words.

This went on for a good ten minutes. Gray was concentrated and determinate in getting through this bastard, and both mages stood silent. Sometimes, the brush would get stuck and pull Juvia's hair harshly, making the said girl's head move back abruptly while a little sound escaped her lips –to which Gray responded with a mumbled 'sorry'.

After a while, the brush was making its way on the waterfall more delicately, and the knot was almost completely gone.

Juvia felt herself sigh in contentment. The man she loved was right behind her, so close she could feel a slight heat emanating from his body. Normally, if a situation like that would've happened at the guild, she would've been in paradise, squealing at her Gray-sama's behavior.

But tonight was not like that.

Gray heard the small breath leaving her lips and knew she was more comfortable now. Then the movement of his hand started going slower. This had been wandering in his mind during the previous month. Juvia's way of acting. Why was she always so clingy and dramatic and desperate at the guild, and then, out of nowhere, she became this calm, serene person. A side of her he knew he was getting too comfortable with.

But the question remained, why did she change her behavior like that?

"Something the matter, Gray-sama?"

Gray snapped back to reality. Could she actually know him so well to know when he was deep-thinking, even when she wasn't facing him?

Somehow, that felt both right and wrong to him.

"Hm," he cleared his throat. "Nothing. Just…wondering about something."

He wasn't planning on telling her but oh well, the words were already out of his mouth.

"Can you tell Juvia? Maybe she can help," added the water mage in a kind voice.

Gray swallowed. Maybe he shouldn't ask, it wasn't really his place anyway. Not like he was close enough to her or anything, right?

"Hm it's…just- it's nothing actually. Forget it."

Juvia bit her upper lip lightly. "Are you sure Gray-sama? Juvia can tell something's on your mind."

Gray almost rolled his eyes. 'Jeez, this woman…'

"Well, if you really want to know… I was just thinking it was strange and…unusual."

"What was?"

Gray found himself taking a shaky breath. "Just…the way you change your personality so radically."

At that, the girl froze. Gray was about to stop brushing the almost-gone knot when he thought he had made a mistake, but then Juvia relaxed a little and spoke. "What do you mean, Gray-sama?"

"…Well like right now. Why do you go from being…you know, to being this calm and…"

"Normal?" she finished for him with a heavy voice.

He didn't agree, nor did he respond to that. So, as the brush continued doing its work, Juvia answered.

"Juvia…doesn't really know to be honest. Sometimes I feel like I can breathe normally, act normally and just…live the moment. Most of these times are when Juvia is alone or…with you, Gray-sama."

She stopped talking, but before Gray could get uncomfortable, she continued.

"But Juvia has always wanted to be a happy person, you know? Like someone who carries joy and laughter and isn't surrounded by rain… Juvia- Juvia thinks Gray-sama has awaken that part of her."

Gray was torn between widening his eyes at her revelation and closing them because surprisingly, in some way, he understood.

"Sorry, Juvia has been talking too much. She doesn't want to annoy you with her silly stories…"

"You're not," Gray cut in. "Plus, I asked, didn't I?"

Juvia smiled tenderly to herself. "Gray-sama did ask."

Silence came back for a few seconds, before Juvia turned slightly to face Gray. "But to answer your question, Gray-sama… Yes, Juvia do think she is a little unusual."

And with that, she gave him one of those smiles. The ones that sent sparks to an icy place of his he knew he didn't like to open.

Gray suddenly stopped brushing, and realized there was not more sight of that knot. Had he really been braiding her hair? For how long?

The dark-haired man frowned slightly before clearing his throat and giving the brush back to Juvia, shoving it into her hand.

"There, it's all gone."

Juvia stared at her possession for a couple of seconds and finally blinked. "Oh! Thank you so much, Gray-sama!"

"That's hm, nothing," Gray scratched the back of his head. "Well I should go back in the tent now so-."

Juvia watched as Gray started walking away from their rock. "Of course! Goodnight, Gray-sama."

He raised his hand as a goodbye. "G'night."

Back in his tent and under a thin cover, Gray's thoughts wouldn't shut down.

"_But to answer your question, Gray-sama… Yes, Juvia do think she is a little unusual."_

Gray sighed loudly. 'Damn it, this woman...'

She was indeed extremely, and dangerously, unique.

**I'm starting to think my ideas are super extra random… oh well… so what do you think? I'm so sorry for Natsu's lines, I have the hardest time writing about him .**

**|Death and Berry|**


	3. February

**Hi again! I'm sorry if it takes some time to upload a chapter, but I'm almost at the end of college finals rush so I'll definitely have more time to write! Enjoy this chap, I liked writing it :)**

**OHMYGOD. Guys I just realized I skipped January… shame on me… So now THIS one is February, I'm sorry for the mixed up!**

Periwinkle Year

{February}

_In a way winter is the real spring, the time when the inner things happen, the resurge of nature. -Edna _

Gray Fullbuster sat on an old and rusty wooden chair, one he had brought from the guild. He cracked his fingers and let out a heavy sigh as he glanced out the window at the cloudy sky. The weather certainly matched the mood that's been hanging around for the last couple of days.

The ice mage looked up to stare at the blue ceiling. Everything –or almost- in this room was blue or white, simple yet flawless. Kind of like the young woman currently lying on the bed a few feet away from Gray.

Juvia's blue hair was almost the same color as her bedroom walls, Gray noticed out of nowhere. His eyes fell on her sleeping face once more. She was so pale, and every time a desperate moan would escape her throat, Gray would tense and resist the urge to move closer to her and hold her hand. Every time her body would shake from the cold sweating, Gray would go look for another blanket to cover her with. Every time small uncomfortable pants would leave her parted lips, Gray would wet her towel again with cold water and replace it on her forehead.

Cana would come to see Juvia at least twice a day, Wendy also two times a day to check on her, and Mirajane, Erza, Lucy and Lisanna would come once, around noon. A few other guild mates had come a time or two before, and Gajeel only visited once, though it was obvious by the way he acted that this still affected him. But being the man he was, he didn't want to let it show.

As for Gray, this worried him way much more than he liked to admit.

"_What do you mean she's probably at home with the world's headache?" _

_Gray frowned as he began to grow more and more skeptical of Cana's words. It was now four in the afternoon and he hadn't seen Juvia all day, and he knew she wasn't on a mission because Mira had told him. And now, after asking the same question to Cana as to where his blue-haired friend was, he certainly didn't like the answer. _

"_We…had a little fun time last night," the brunette laughed recklessly at the ice mage. _

"_Cana…" Gray said in an almost-growl. _

"_It really wasn't such a great plan, Cana," Mirajane suddenly cut in. "You gave her way too much to drink, not everyone has got a liver like yours." _

_Gray flicked his tongue. "I knew it," he grumbled. "So, how much did you give her, 'usually takes her at least 15 drinks to get drunk."_

"_Oh, believe me she was past that little drunk state…" Cana left her sentence in suspense before grinning from ear to ear. "Four barrels."_

_Gray's eyes widened and his mouth opened sharply at the two words he had just heard. "You gave her four barrels?!"_

_Cana suddenly burst out laughing, and loudly. "I know! That was so fun, I've never seen anyone drink this much! Aside from me and Bacchus, of course."_

_Gray suddenly felt an intense rage. She thought it was _that_ funny to play with her friend's health? He didn't know why he felt so bothered by Cana's behavior, but right now, he couldn't care less. _

"_Are you crazy?! That's not funny at all! If she's not here because of that today then she must be on the pit of death right now!"_

"_Oh, relax Gray," Cana waved her hand at him, rolling her eyes then crossing her arms over her chest. _

_But Gray couldn't deal with her right now. _

"_Mira why didn't you stop it?" he asked harshly, turning to the white-haired lady._

"_I'm sorry Gray I was with Lisanna and Master," she replied, lowering her head a little._

_Cana scoffed while staring at the two. "Oh come on! It's no big deal, you said it yourself Gray: she's made of water; she will absorb everything and probably won't even be affected. I'll bet she's in town right now doing her shopping or somethin'." _

_Gray didn't speak for a few seconds, before finally letting out a sharp sigh. Okay so maybe he was exaggerating a bit._

"_I guess you're right." He then frowned in an unpleased way, his eyes closed and his arms crossed on his chest. "But 'still think it was a fucking stupid idea."_

_The woman had to roll her eyes another time. "Since when did you become such a wimp Gray," she stated more than questioned as she made her way back to her usual table, another barrel of sake in hand. _

_Gray just ignored her and went to sit at the bar. It wasn't Juvia-like to disappear for a whole day, without saying anything to anyone about her plans. Gray didn't realize he had kept his frown on until Mira came to him and said: "If she's still missing tomorrow, we'll go check at her place, alright?"_

_Gray only nodded before standing up and heading to his own place. _

_The next day, at lunch time, the guild was full of mages. _

_But Juvia was not there._

_And so at night, before he even realized it, Gray Fullbuster was in Fairy Hills, knocking on Juvia's door, Mirajane waiting next to him for the water mage to open._

_He knew he had probably been overreacting, but when nobody answered at the 7__th__ knock, he couldn't help listening to the growing feeling in his stomach that told him to worry. _

"_She might be out…" said Mira, but her tone yelled uncertain. _

_No way was Gray leaving like this. _

_Not waiting another second, the young man turned the doorknob to find out that it wasn't even locked. _

_Not good._

_He shot Mira a look and knew she was thinking the same thing. Gray then pushed the door opened, slowly and carefully, almost as if he was scared of what would be waiting for them inside. But there was nothing. The place was untouched and the room plunged in the dark. _

_Only one light could be seen, and it seemed to be coming out of a small room, a bathroom perhaps. _

_Gray stepped in the apartment, Mira right behind him. "Juvia?" Gray's voice broke the tension, or made it even greater, go figure. _

_But when he arrived at the source of light, the bathroom's door fully opened, he wasn't expecting to see this. _

_Juvia, her knees on the floor, one hand on the toilet while the other clutched at her stomach._

_Her blue hair was loosely tied up in a bun, her skin even paler than usual and trails of tears were marking her face. _

_But most of all, it was her weak yet pained expression that made Gray's heart stop as he ran to her side. _

"_Juvia! Juvia do you hear me?"_

_Her blue eyes half opened hazily at Gray's words, her hand leaving the toilet and dropping on the floor when the young man took her in his arms. _

"_Gr-Gray…sa-"_

"_Shh, don't speak Juvia," Mirajane stepped in, stroking the girl's cheek kindly. "We'll bring you to Wendy." _

_Gray walked as fast as he could with Juvia in his arms, but still had to stop twice when she whined in discomfort and tugged at his shirt. He had stopped and, to her silent demand, lowered her to the floor, only to see her throw up on the ground. A lot. But it wasn't normal and he knew it: it didn't have any sent or color. He just knew, she was throwing up water._

_Juvia didn't want him to see her like this but like hell he was gonna go. He just stayed closed, waiting for her stomach to calm down while Mira gently stroked her back. When Gray took her in his arms again, she was shaking uncontrollably. Her neck was covered in sweat while her hands were frozen, and she was light. Extremely light. Abnormally light. _

_They finally arrived at the guild, and immediately ran to Wendy._

_The little Dragon Slayer's powers didn't have any affects. _

_Many of their friends followed them to see Polyussica. The said lady almost threw a table at them for disturbing her in the middle of the night, but immediately changed after seeing the state Juvia was in. _

_For Gray, the night had passed in a blur. He couldn't even put his thoughts in line or think clearly as he waited in the woman's living room along with several guild comrades. Some didn't think this was serious, that it was just a big hangover, but Gray knew better. So while a few mages spoke while waiting, he remained silent. The only thing he noticed aside that was Cana's unusual silence as she sat on a chair next to his. _

_Finally, about a half an hour later, Polyussica came out of the room, a serious expression on her face. _

"_Since Juvia Lockser has a body made of water," the woman started explaining. "The extreme amount of alcohol she drank turned against her. As you probably know, alcohol normally doesn't affect her much, since her water absorbs it, then gets rid of it easily. That time, however, she took too much, so much that it overtook the water. That's why she keeps throwing up now. Her body is trying to reject the alcohol by letting out water. Basically, her body reacted as if this was poison."_

_Nobody spoke and Cana was now staring blankly at the ground, until Polyussica continued. _

"_The alcohol is now lodged in various places of her body, therefore, she would've thrown up until dehydration and eventually death if you wouldn't have found her."_

_She saw Gray freeze and others about to speak so she quickly went on. "Don't worry. I have it all under control. I gave her a remedy that will capture the poison so that her body will be able to reject it normally. The process is 98% efficient, so I wouldn't worry too much. It might take a couple of days, but the vomiting will go on for another day or two, so make sure you don't leave her alone." _

Gray closed his eyes as Polyussica's last words resonated in his mind. _She will still be sick, if you can call it that, for a day or so, then she will fall in a state that resembles sleep. If everything goes well, she'll wake up after 72 hours, maybe less._

Gray rubbed his eyes for what felt like the hundredth time. He hadn't gotten much sleep in the last days, well, none at all actually. It had now been 60 hours since Polyussica gave Juvia what was supposed to cure her, and he had been the one to stay by her side. He didn't mind, really, even if many guild mates, such as Mira, Lucy and Wendy, had offered to take his place more than once. But he said no every time. And he didn't tell that to anybody, but he didn't think he would even be able to fall asleep by going back to his place for rest.

Natsu and Happy had also brought him food a few times, which he ate, although the appetite wasn't really there.

It had been about 40 hours since Juvia had stopped waking up to throw up. The first 20 or so hours were horrible. Juvia was still on her bed then out of nowhere she'd let out a desperate moan and Gray had to raise her back for her a little so she could let it out, in a big bucket the young man kept close. Every time it was over, Gray cleaned the corner of her mouth with a tissue and tried to pour some water into her mouth, so she wouldn't get too dehydrated. The task itself wasn't easy at all since Juvia had been sick for about two or three days in a row, and barely had enough strength to raise one hand.

Gray didn't even want to think about how he hated to see her like this.

Of course, it was obvious that Cana was the one feeling worse about the whole situation, since she kinda was the one that was behind it in the first place. The thought of his brown haired nakama brought him back in his memories.

"_Gray… I… I'm really sorry. Juvia is my friend and I would never do anything to hurt her… I went too far the other night… I'm truly sorry, Gray-"_

"_Yeah." The young man said harshly as he searched for a bucket under the sink in Juvia's little kitchen. _

_He knew he was being cold to Cana, but he couldn't help it, and sincerely, he didn't care about that right now. He couldn't._

_Cana nodded weakly. "Tell me if you need anything…" _

_And with that, she was gone. _

Gray knew she just felt pathetic with herself, so he let her leave that time, just like he let her come to see Juvia.

He was suddenly pulled out of his thoughts when he heard Juvia move slightly on her mattress. He immediately moved closer and tensed, waiting to see her next move to know what to do.

He saw her pink little tongue pass on her dry bottom lip, then her chest move up as she breathed deeply, and finally, her eyes slowly opening to him.

Gray didn't even realized he had let out a sigh of relief when he moved his chair closer to Juvia's bed and hesitantly put his hand on her thin forearm.

"Juvia… Can you hear me?" His tone was soft. Softer than he ever remembered using.

The girl turned her head slightly and blinked one time. Then two. She seemed to analyse Gray's face for a moment, then the setting around her.

"Gra-"

She was quickly cut short by a cough that made her cover her mouth with one hand and grip her stomach with the other.

Gray abruptly left his chair to take the glass of water he had kept close, just in case, then went back to Juvia's side. He helped her sit in a better position, held the back of her head so she could drink and brought the glass to her lips.

Much to his surprise, the girl took the glass away from his hand as soon as the fresh liquid came in contact with her sore throat, and ended up drinking its entire content.

"Easy there, don't push yourself too much."

Once Juvia was done with the glass she hesitantly gave it back to Gray, and her stare fell on him for the first time in days. He couldn't even understand how good that felt.

"How are you feeling?" He asked her, sitting back on his chair, his forearms resting on the mattress.

"J-Juvia… Juvia's stomach hurts," she silently admitted, her hand going to her tummy.

Gray saw her widen her blue eyes, then take the end of her loose t-shirt between two slim fingers, and slowly, very slowly, raise the peace of tissue until her belly was in sight.

The ice mage swallowed while Juvia's eyes remained wide, staring in shock at the current state of her body. Her normally flat stomach was slightly curved inside, hip bones were evidently standing out and if she would've raised her shirt up a little more, the ribs under her porcelain skin would've appeared as well.

Juvia's shaky hand let go of her top and she slowly raised it to place a braid of blue hair behind her ear. "Gray-sama… Wh-what happened to Juvia?"

Gray took a deep breath; surely she wasn't going to remember a thing about what happened. And so, a second later, he started telling Juvia the whole story.

Her eyes only widened a time or two, and she only seemed shocked by the consequences the alcohol had brought to her health. By the end of Gray's explanation, her stare was down on her own intertwined fingers.

"Look I can't tell you how to feel about Cana right now, but just know that she has come to visit you a lot and…I'm pretty sure she can't even look at herself in a mirror."

Juvia quickly reacted. "Oh, no! Juvia does not hold anything against Cana-san. I know she had no bad intentions, Cana-san is my friend, no matter what."

Gray blinked at her words. Honestly, he knew she had a good heart, but right now, he found himself almost blown-away by the woman in front of him.

He couldn't help the small smile that made its way on his face. "You're pretty amazing, you know that?"

If she would've had more energy, Juvia Lockser would be rolling on the floor in a river of emotions right now.

However, her lack of strength only made the girl freeze, before turning to look at Gray, a sweet blush lightly coloring her pale face.

"Wh-what?"

Gray's smile fell as the impact of his own words hit him like a rock.

He scratched the back of his head nervously. "I, uh, I just mean that uh… It's cool how much faith you put into your friends…"

Juvia blinked once. "Oh," she breathed. "Juvia must admit though, she is quite embarrassed."

Gray didn't know whether to frown or raise an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"Well, Juvia appreciates what Gray-sama did and…he has stayed here with her for a long time… He," the blush was making its way back on her cheeks. "He even saw her throw up…"

The young woman just wanted to hide her face in her hands, when Gray scoffed. "That's nothing to worry about. You would've done the same for any of your close friends too, I'm pretty sure." He flashed her another one of his rare corner smiles. "Just focus on getting back on feet for the moment, alright?"

Juvia stood silent for a bit, her eyes never leaving his, like she could read right through him. She nodded, "Yes."

"So, how do you feel right now?" Gray then asked after a couple of seconds.

"Juvia feels…empty. And…weak," she said with quite an uncomfortable and worn out expression.

"Oh, right, would you feel like eating something? Like, I dunno, some crackers?"

"Crackers and water would be perfect," she almost mumbled as her eyes closed in spite of herself. She then whispered a small "Thank you…"

Gray, knowing she couldn't see him, smiled slightly to himself as he admired her now sleeping face.

"No problem, Juvia."

. . . . . . . . . .

**I know sick Juvia is a real classic but I hope you still enjoyed it? I wanted to make this pretty serious but at the same time not too much. Anyways thank you for reading and for keeping up with my uptades!**

**Oh by the way, do you guys have any requests of what you would like to happen at some point in the story? I might use some ideas for inspiration~**


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